FCC questions YouTube TV over allegation it discriminates against Christian content
The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission has questioned if YouTube TV is potentially discriminating against faith-based programming by refusing to carry Great American Family, a network popular for its family-friendly and Christian content.
In a letter sent March 7 to Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet Inc., and Neal Mohan, CEO of Google, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr cited a complaint from Great American Media alleging the Google-owned YouTube TV "deliberately marginalizes faith-based and family-friendly content.'"
Carr raised questions about YouTube's decision to exclude Great American Family from its streaming platform, while the network is carried on other major platforms like Comcast, Cox, Hulu and FuboTV.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"[T]hese allegations of faith-based discrimination come at a time when American public discourse has experienced an unprecedented surge in censorship," Carr wrote. "In too many cases, tech companies silenced individuals for doing nothing more than expressing themselves online and in the digital town square. Therefore, I am writing to determine whether YouTube TV has a policy or practice that favors discrimination against faith-based channels."
While the FCC has limited authority over YouTube TV, launched in 2017, and other virtual multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs), Carr stated that federal regulators are exploring how to expand the government's regulatory framework to include MVPDs.
"Understanding the nature of carriage policies in the virtual MVPD sector can help inform the FCC's approach to the broader set of regulatory issues the FCC has been called upon to address," wrote Carr.
Carr acknowledged that independent programmers often file complaints with the FCC when an "MVPD (virtual or otherwise) refuses to carry their channel."
"That is nothing new. In many of these cases, it is clear that the MVPD is making a good-faith business decision based on marketplace conditions and consumer demand," he added.
"But in the case of YouTube TV, concerns have been raised alleging that your company has a policy (secret or otherwise) that discriminates against faith-based programming."
In response to Carr's letter, a YouTube spokesperson released a statement offering to inform the FCC on how the platform makes business decisions, such as which networks it carries.
"We welcome the opportunity to brief the FCC on YouTube TV's subscription service and the strategic business decisions we make based on factors like user demand, operational cost and financial terms, and to reiterate that we do not have any policies that prohibit religious content," the spokesperson said.
Great American Family, which has over 101,000 subscribers on YouTube, isn't carried on YouTube TV despite being available on all major streamers and DirecTV Stream.
Helmed by CEO Bill Abbott, Great American Family launched in 2021 as a rival of Hallmark and merged with faith-based Pure Flix in 2023, launching a streaming service, Great American Pure Flix.
While some networks saw steep declines in 2024, Great American Family experienced double-digit growth. In November alone, the network reported a 19% increase in household viewership and a 21% rise in total viewers. The women 25-54 demographic also grew by 13%.
Abbott made headlines in 2020 after stepping down from his role as CEO of Crown Media Family Networks, the parent company of Hallmark, after the company announced it would make a concentrated effort to produce "projects featuring LGBTQ storylines, characters, and actors."
Abbott told CP in December that Great American Family stands apart from mainstream platforms by honoring traditional values.
"In 'mainstream' entertainment, the portrayal of faith, family and country is often dismissive, caricatured or outright derisive," he explained. "One of the qualifications that that content needs to have to air on our platforms is to be supportive and encouraging in regard to the traditions and values that are central to faith, family and country."
